


A Trick of the Mind

by Rochelle_Templer



Series: Inktober For Writers 2017 [22]
Category: Diagnosis Murder
Genre: Father-Son Relationship, Gen, Introspection
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-23
Updated: 2017-10-23
Packaged: 2019-01-21 19:27:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,299
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12464322
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rochelle_Templer/pseuds/Rochelle_Templer
Summary: Sometimes, Steve feels out of place....





	A Trick of the Mind

**Author's Note:**

> This is part of my Inktober for Writers project. The prompt for this fic was "lost".

Steve Sloan let out a long sigh and asked himself for the seventh time that evening why he had agreed to come to this party.

Actually, ‘party’ was a generous term to describe what was going on around him even though it was technically accurate. There were a few decorations. Sparse and unimaginative, but they were still there. There was some dull piano music playing in the background which was better for talking over than dancing to. Also, everyone, including him, was dressed formally for this gathering. Although, Steve wondered if it was time to invest in a new tuxedo. The one he was wearing felt like it was made of thick cardboard and was lined with sandpaper. He quickly discarded the idea, however, when he figured that most tuxedos felt like that to him anyway.

Before the urge to leave and find something else to do could become too strong, Steve reminded himself of why he had come: because of what it meant to his father.

About a week ago, Mark had been notified that he was receiving an award from a small society of doctors in California which recognized both his charity work and the contributions he had made to the field of internal medicine. While it wasn’t a very well-known society and Mark had been given more prestigious awards in the past, Steve knew that this one meant more to his father for a variety of reasons. Still, even though he was pleased with the award, Mark always preferred to not attend these events alone, so Amanda, Jesse and Steve had agreed to go with him for support.

The event itself was subdued bordering on staid, but it hadn’t taken Steve long to realize that this party was mostly an opportunity for the doctors practicing in the state to recognize each other’s achievements and catch up on professional matters. Which was fine for Mark, Jesse and Amanda. They were able to talk shop with colleagues they had met before or had wanted to meet as well as catch up with old friends they hadn’t seen in a while.

Steve, however, felt out of place in these surroundings. There were others here who were not doctors, spouses of doctors who were in attendance, but they kept to themselves in tight groups scattered throughout the ballroom. There were also some people here he knew of by name or by passing acquaintance through his father, but they were all interested in talking to Mark. Thus, just about all of the conversation Steve had had for the past two hours revolved around directing people to the last place he had seen Mark.

The one thing this party did have going for it though, was an expansive buffet table which was fully stocked with scrumptious food. An asset that Steve fully intended on taking advantage of. If nothing else, he would get a great meal out of all this.

It was while he was helping himself to another round of the mini burrito snacks that a pair of middle aged men and their wives came up to him.

“Excuse me,” one of the men said. “I heard that you had come with Doctor Sloan’s party. Would you happen to know where we could find him? We would very much like to meet him.”

Steve gulped down the morsel in his mouth before responding. “Sure. That’s him over there. White hair, glasses.” Steve pointed to an area right in front of the stage.

“Ah yes, thank you,” the man said. “Let’s go, Colin.”

The two men left while the wives stayed behind to sip at cups of punch. Steve had finished with the burritos and was about to move onto to the cracker snacks when one of them touched his arm.

“I heard that Doctor Sloan is here with his son,” she said. “That must be him standing next to him. Colin was speaking to him earlier. He seems quite bright with a wonderful future ahead of him.”

Steve looked over where she had indicated and spotted Jesse standing next to Mark. It didn’t take long for him to deduce that she had mistaken Jesse as Mark’s son.

“Actually, that’s not….”

“Have you known Doctor Sloan and his son long?” the other woman cut in.

“Yes, you could say all my life,” Steve said with a smirk. “You see I’m….”

“Tell me, what is your specialty?” the first woman said.

“Yes,” the second one chimed in. “My husband is a cardiologist while Edie’s here is an endocrinologist.”

“Actually, I’m not a doctor,” Steve said. “I’m a homicide lieutenant with the LAPD.”

“Oh I see,” the one called Edie replied. “That’s nice. Isn’t it, Judith?”

“Yes, nice,” Judith nodded. “Ah look, there is Doctor Malroy and Susan. Would you excuse us?”

“Sure,” Steve repeated, giving them a little wave as they left. They hadn’t said it aloud, but the deflation in their enthusiasm when he mentioned that he was a cop made their feelings about that fact very clear.

Steve stuck a cracker into his mouth and chewed thoughtfully while watching the crowd around him. He could understand why people had thought that Jesse was Mark’s son. Jesse reminded Steve a lot of Mark when his father was younger. They both possessed razor sharp minds with plenty of creativity along with youthful energy and a zeal to try new things. Temperament wise, they were far more similar than Steve was with Mark.

An uncomfortable feeling Steve couldn’t put his finger on started to well up inside. He was happy that Jesse meshed so well with Mark and that he had become a part of their family. Steve regarded Jesse as the little brother he had always wanted while Mark had filled a much-needed father role in Jesse’s life. And Jesse certainly deserved to have the support system he and his father had been able to provide.

Still, another part of Steve felt self-conscious over how easy it probably was for people to not catch on that he was Mark’s son. There was the physical resemblance which sometimes was enough of a clue, but he could see little else that was similar about them. Mark was gregarious and could make people laugh effortlessly whereas Steve was reserved with a dry sense of humor. Mark had a quick wit and a mind well suited for the complexities of medicine whereas Steve had not forgotten how he had had to drop out of law school and was quite aware that he wouldn’t  have gotten anywhere in med school if he had attempted it.

The sound of laughter focused Steve’s attention back onto his father. He could tell that Mark was amusing the crowd with some funny story while Jesse was adding in his own touches to make it more entertaining. A wistful smile appeared on Steve’s face. He always considered himself very lucky to have Mark Sloan as his father. However, once in a while, he wished that his father could have been lucky enough to have a son like Jesse. Someone who could follow in Mark’s footsteps and who could keep pace with his keen mind as well as join in with Mark’s easy-going sense of fun.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” a voice boomed from the stage. “If you could please be seated, the award ceremony can begin.”

Steve scooped up a few more appetizers and grabbed another cup of punch before heading toward the table that was reserved for his father. Mark was sure to be more than a little embarrassed by what was coming up, but Steve was looking forward to his father getting some more richly deserved accolades.

Mainly because, for a brief moment, a room full of people could share in some of the feelings Steve had for his father every day.


End file.
